The Third Wheel
by sponsormusings
Summary: Katniss Everdeen was done with blind dates, Internet dates, speed dates, any kind of date. And if she didn't want to be a third wheel, then she'd just damn well stay at home. A submission for Prompts in Panem (Seven Deadly Sins) - Day 1 - Wrath.
1. Chapter 1

Katniss Everdeen pressed her face into the pillow, the thunderous scream that ripped from her throat muffling itself against the soft pale blue cotton.

He'd done it again.

Rolling onto her back, she clenched her hands into tight fists that rested by her side, anger and frustration coursing through her like a wildfire. Anger and frustration at him, for not only picking her up late and then treating her like a piece of shit for the rest of the night, but anger and frustration at herself for giving him a second shot.

Assholes like Cato Phillips didn't deserve a first chance really, let alone a second one.

But she'd given him one, at urging from Prim, from Madge, even her mom, that maybe their first date had just been an anomaly. After all, blind dates could sometimes be awkward, be a little weird, especially if neither had been on one before.

_No_, she shook her head angrily to herself, _the date had failed because he was a dick, and she was never, ever, ever going to let Clove set her up on another one again._

Reaching down and plucking her phone from the purse she'd dumped beside the bed, she tapped out a text, having to delete and rewrite words half a dozen times as her fingers bashed forcefully at the screen.

_Katniss: M, next time Clove tells me she's setting me up on a blind date, remind me to tell her to go fuck herself. Really. I should have known, coming from her, that it would be a damned failure._

She let it drop onto the mattress, and only had to wait a moment to hear the soft ping in response.

_Madge: Ah, shit, Kat, really? It was just as bad as the first time? I'm sorry. I prob shouldn't have told you to give him another go._

_Katniss: You're damned right. Gah! I'm so pissed right now._

_Madge: What the hell did he do?_

_Katniss: Let me put it this way. If you ever go out on a date and the guy tries to cop a feel of your waitress when he thinks you're not looking, feel free to slug him one. Just...there's no more of this blind date shit for me, ok? I don't need anyone right now._

_Madge: I promise there won't be. Scouts honour. I'm sorry it sucked._

Katniss let the phone drop to the floor where it landed on the cream mat with a thud, and flung an arm over her eyes, blocking the thin sliver of moonlight that was filtering through the blind. She couldn't be assed closing them properly right now.

She didn't know why she'd yes to Clove in the first place.

_Yes you do, Katniss, it was the group of expectant eyes all staring at you in the work lunchroom as Clove suggested it._

She didn't know why Madge and Prim had encouraged her for another date.

_Yes you do, Katniss, because although they'd never say it, you know they don't want you to be the third wheel in their relationships forever._

She didn't know why she'd given him a second chance.

_Yes you do, Katniss, because you don't want to be the third wheel forever either._

She sighed, and rolled over again, punching the pillow with more force than necessary to get it comfortable. Either way, it didn't matter. She was 27 years old, had a successful job, had a relatively decent apartment for the first time in her life, and she didn't have to eat peas anymore if she damn well didn't want to. She was done with blind dates, Internet dates, speed dates, any kind of date. And if she didn't want to be a third wheel, then she'd just damn well stay at home.

She envisioned she had a lot of dates with Netflix in her future, and she didn't care one bit.

* * *

"Miss Everdeen?"

"Yeah?"

"Um, there's a guy standing at the door."

Katniss' head whipped up from the book she was quietly reading at her desk, towards the door where, through the square window, she could see there was indeed someone standing. From this far away, and with her reading glasses on, all she saw was a blur of blonde hair. Yanking the black framed glasses from the bridge of her nose - she still wasn't completely used to them and hated the fact that she had to wear them at all - she stood up, glanced at the clock and stalked over to the door. She rested a hand on the knob before turning back to face the room.

"You have five minutes, guys, then those science tests are all mine. Don't screw about." She yanked open the door and stepped outside, leaving it open just ajar. She could already hear the murmurs starting, and she sighed. "Can I help you?" She asked bluntly, and glanced up into the face of the intruder.

_Shit._

"Uh, yeah. I'm looking for the auditorium, but I'm pretty sure I took a wrong turn." The accompanying grin was almost bashful, blue eyes twinkling with both nerves and laughter, and Katniss swallowed heavily.

She hadn't seen him before. He was obviously new, maybe even fresh out of university. He wasn't exceptionally tall, but that would be the last thing you'd really notice of him anyway. You'd be too busy looking at the broad shoulders, the legs that looked too damn good in jeans and...well, she wasn't going to think about those eyes twice.

She couldn't ever remember being so dumbstruck in her life.

She cleared her throat, aware that silence was lingering, and pointed to her left. "If you came from Principal Paylor's office, you needed to turn left instead of right at that corridor back there. You'll find it if you keep going straight ahead. Now if you'll excuse me-" she started to turn back to the door, but paused as his hand rested on her arm.

"Thanks, ah...?"

She sighed. _Great. The cute guy had just ruined himself by wanting to chat. _"Miss Everdeen."

"Thanks Miss Everdeen," he replied formally with a grin. "I'm Mr Mellark, the new art teacher."

"Of course you are," she replied with a thin-lipped smile. "I teach sciences, and right now I have a bunch of kids being little shits back there because I'm out here, so..." She trailed off and began to open the door. "I hope you find the auditorium, Mr Mellark." She closed the door behind her, ignoring the smile that still graced his face, and fixed her students - who were now sitting quietly, only sneaked grins to each other giving them away - with a glare. She shook her head and rolled her eyes at the same time as giggling erupted.

"C'mon guys. You really think I'm that stupid? I know you were talking all the way through that. Hand those papers back now." She held a hand out as she made her way around the classroom, collecting each paper as she went, and she had to suppress a grin. These kids might drive her nuts some days, but in this class, they were the snarkiest ones she knew. She loved their sass, their unapologetic grumpiness, the way their scowls greeted her on the way in, and their smiles said goodbye as they went out. They pretty much loved her for the same reasons.

Katniss Everdeen had never imagined being a teacher, but now she couldn't think of anything else she would ever want to do.

Moving back to her desk, she opened the drawer, shoving the papers inside before locking it with the key that jangled against two other charms on a long chain that ended just below the valley of her breasts beneath her shirt. It was lunch, which meant Clove, she of the bad blind-date set up and Capitol High School's resident running coach, was going to get an earful. Or the cold shoulder which, Katniss admitted, she did so much better than a verbal spar.

She grabbed her bag and walked down the corridor, a slim woman with long ebony hair that, no matter how it started in the morning, would always be in a braid by the time she returned home. Silver eyes, inherited from her father, that were quiet and soft until she got angry or excited. And then they sparked like a bolt of electricity, bright and fiery and intense.

At least, that was what a fleeting potential hook up once told her when he was trying (unsuccessfully) to get into her pants.

Pushing open the door, she took a quick glance around the half empty staffroom, noted Clove by the coffee machine, and moved towards the small table by the window. There was no point in her going to Clove - the short brunette would undoubtedly come to her.

"Hey Katniss!" The voice was high pitched, a little nasal, and right on cue. _Good, _Katniss thought, _she has a cold. Serves her right_. "How did the date go?"

Katniss glanced up, eyebrow raised, as she unwrapped the boring sandwich she'd packed for lunch. "Never again, Clove. Never again. Seriously. I mean it."

"Really? Why?" Clove seemed genuinely surprised, and sat across from Katniss. She had to sigh - she didn't really like Clove on the best of days, let alone having to talk to her about shit like this. She took a huge bite of bread and cheese and ham, and took her time chewing and swallowing.

Simply because she knew having to wait would piss Clove off.

She finally swallowed, and sighed. "Because, like I thought the first time, Cato is an asshole. It wasn't any better than the first date. And if you're so intent on setting him up with someone, why the hell don't _you_ go out with him, if you think he's that fabulous?" Clove's mouth dropped open, and she blushed. And for the first time, Katniss clued in. "Oh, wow, you want to, don't you? Why the hell are you pushing him onto-"

"Katniss!" She heard her name carried across the room, and looked over to see Madge rushing in the door, her blonde hair flying. Madge was her closest friend at the school, and Katniss had to say it wasn't necessarily the prim and proper and polite Madge that had appealed to her when she had started at the school two years earlier.

It was the one who had a penchant for telling the dirtiest jokes Katniss had ever heard.

The pretty music teacher fell into the final spare chair and dumped her bag on the floor, barely glancing at a still blushing Clove. "You will NOT believe what I just saw!"

"Madge, you know I hate this game. Just tell me."

Madge rolled her eyes, and rested her elbows on the table edge, cupping her chin in her hands. "I just saw the hottest teacher to have ever graced these halls. And as a soon-to-be married woman, I can't have him. Katniss, I need to introduce you to the new art teacher-"

"Mellark," Katniss interrupted, and sat back in her chair. Madge's mouth dropped open in surprise. "I've already seen him and while yes, he's good looking for sure, he's too young for me. And I already told you on _Saturday night_," she said pointedly, shooting a glare in Clove's still oblivious direction, "I don't want anything like that. I don't want to be set up, I don't want any dates, I don't want anything. I'm fine."

"Heh," Madge replied with a smirk. "You said he was good looking."

"Ugh, whatever." She pushed her chair back, stuffing the rest of the sandwich in her mouth before tugging the strap of her bag over her shoulder. "I'm gonna go...mark exams or some shit. Alone. On my own. The way I want it."

Madge just grinned. Clove didn't even notice she'd gone.

* * *

So he was cute.

It didn't even matter.

_He was younger than her._

_He was another teacher._

_She didn't want a relationship right now._

_She didn't even want a date._

But it didn't stop her from glancing at his ass as she watched him on stage in the auditorium during her lunchbreak, laughing with three students as they unfurled a large roll of material, which from this far away just looked like swirls of orange on white on pale peach.

Peeta Mellark been there for 3 months already, and had injected a breath of fresh air into the art department. He'd not only reinvigorated a curriculum that hadn't been updated since before Katniss was born, but had also gotten involved in the school play, designing the sets with a half dozen students - most of whom were Katniss' as well, and who had been bugging her for weeks to look at their project.

She'd made up every excuse in the book, until Madge had suspiciously queried why she was being so stubborn. And because she didn't want to admit that the new art teacher - who she'd confirmed _was_ fresh out of university - had occupied one or two or ten dreams that had had Katniss needing a cold shower when she awoke, she finally relented.

But now she was here she kind of regretted it, _because she couldn't stop looking at him and thinking about putting her hands on his ass_. It was ridiculous. She was a grown woman, and she was better than this.

She sighed. _No, apparently she wasn't_.

Katniss had only spoken to him on that one occasion; otherwise they had only had a fleeting hello in the hallway, a nod of the head in the staffroom. He'd attempted to strike up another conversation with her one afternoon as they'd both been leaving at the same time, but she'd lost the quick words she'd had for him the first time they'd met - her tongue had tied and tangled until he'd smiled at her awkwardly and excused himself.

She'd never felt like a bigger fool.

"Hey Miss Everdeen!" She shook her head as she heard a voice call her name, and she looked up to see Rue waving at her from the stage. She lifted a hand awkwardly in return, and made her way down the centre path to the foot of the stage.

"Hey Rue. This is looking really good. Worth the extra credit, huh?"

Rue - a senior with a shock of wayward curls, pretty brown eyes and mocha skin - nodded happily, then slid her eyes across to Peeta, who had moved up a ladder and was now fixing the draping of fabric across a large wall at the back of the stage. "_Very_ worth it," she giggled, and Katniss had to hold herself back from rolling her eyes.

_Good lord, the students as well?_

"What do you think?" he suddenly called from his lofty height, looking down to Katniss and Rue. Katniss studied the silky fabric, falling gently and shimmering under the bright stage lights.

"It...it looks like a sunset," Katniss said, surprised. While the wall itself had also been painted various shades of orange, it was the rippling effect of the material that made it come alive, made it real. The guy knew what he was doing.

"Then I've done my job," he grinned, and skipped the final few rungs of the ladder, jumping to the floor with a thud. The other two girls who'd been assisting had moved to the side of the stage and tittered to each other as he wiped his hands on the back of his jeans and stopped beside Katniss and Rue.

"What's the performance again this year?" Katniss asked.

"It's one the school hasn't done before, one based on a recent YA book. I heard Cress- I mean, Miss Jones, had to do some serious convincing to get them to agree, but she got it in the end. Rue here has a starring role," Peeta nudged the young girl in the shoulder, who grinned, before she caught the other girls gesturing her over.

"Ugh, sorry Mr M. I have to go. You're right with the rest?"

"I'm fine, Rue. Everything else can wait til after school. Thanks for your help." Rue nodded, grabbed her bag and shot off out the side doors, waving over her shoulder, with her friends in tow.

With a jolt of realisation, Katniss found herself alone with the blonde art teacher.

She shuffled her feet a little, desperate to look at her watch, and make an excuse like Rue had. But she couldn't, simply because she knew she was an awful liar, and he'd know. _ He'd just know. _So she stood, and glanced around the stage as if completely enthralled by the set.

"I've never seen you in here before," she heard him comment, and she glanced back at him. He was smiling just with the left side of his mouth, the smallest dimple popping in his cheek. He'd shoved his hands in the back pockets of his jeans, his knee bent and his posture relaxed; Katniss marvelled at how self-assured he seemed for a 23 year old.

_23, Katniss, you know he's 23_.

"I, uh, I've been really busy. Lots of exams to mark. But, uh, Rue had been asking me for a while to check in, she seems really excited by it."

Peeta nodded enthusiastically. "Rue's great. She's very talented, and unlike some other students, she's not a prissy bi- erm..." he blushed, and Katniss almost laughed.

"It's ok. I know what you're trying to say," she replied with a smile.

"Yeah, there are times when I forget that I need to be careful about what I say now I'm gainfully employed," he said ruefully.

"The pitfalls of being a teacher," Katniss joked, and he laughed. He slid his hand from his jeans pocket and glanced at his watch, before grimacing.

"I'm sorry, I actually have to go too. I'm catching up with Cressida about rehearsals this weekend - somehow not only have I signed up for the set design, but I'm also a chaperone for rehearsals. Something about hoping to avoid the kids making out in the dressing room or something." He walked to the edge of the stage and jumped off it, before turning back to her. "But, uh, it's been nice talking to you, Miss Everdeen. Drop by whenever you like." He tipped his head, and had walked halfway up the path before she cleared her throat enough to call out to him.

"Mr Mellark?"

He twisted first his head, then his body around, before beginning to walk backwards. "Yeah?"

"You can call me Katniss."

He smiled. "Then drop by whenever you like, Katniss."

She watched him walk out, then slapped a palm to her forehead.

_What the hell was she doing?_

* * *

It happened so subtly that she didn't notice it at first. She would see him occasionally in the staffroom, and he would say hi and ask how Rue was going in her science classes. It became a habit for her to ask after the play if they both happened to be in the administration centre, or if they shared detention duty. They would have a quick chat over the potentially life ending staffroom coffee after a staff meeting.

Then suddenly they were eating lunch together every time they had the same period off, and she would find herself wandering down to the auditorium on Wednesdays to watch rehearsals once her last class had finished. Nothing had ever moved beyond friendly - she made sure of it, because she absolutely didn't need to make a bumbling fool of herself - but somehow, in the matter of a couple of months, they had become friends.

Over shared sandwiches - his turkey and cranberry on rye concoction beat hers hands down - they discovered a shared love of the same music, opposing views on Marvel movies (she hated them, he loved them, to no surprise), and had had a viciously heated discussion when he had almost spoiled season three of Game of Thrones for her. He'd offered for her to go to his place to watch it so she could catch up, but she'd declined, blushing red and thinking there was no way in hell she could watch that with him in the same room.

Madge had commented on their growing closeness a number of times, but Katniss had finally snapped at her to shut the hell up. She thought it may have given the game away, but it hadn't been mentioned since.

"Katniss? Earth to Katniss?" Peeta waved a hand in front of her face to get her attention, and she shook her head, startled. "Where'd you go?"

"Uh...just going through the answers in my head to the exam my eighth graders have on Monday."

He shook his head. "So serious! Come on, think about fun stuff. What are you doing this weekend?"

"I dunno, it's still two days away," Katniss shrugged. "My sister wanted me to go shopping with her, but then we both remembered I hate the mall. So...nothing I suppose. What about you?"

He gestured with his arm, out towards the stage where two dark haired girls rolled across the wooden floor, in a fairly good impression of a fight. "Rehearsals are my life. Although I'm glad I stepped forward - it's great - I have had zero social life the last 5 months as a result."

"You only have 2 more weeks of rehearsals though, right?"

"Yeah. I guess that puts an end to these clandestine meetings between us, huh?" He nudged her shoulder with his, and she had to grip the handle of the seat at the blast of heat that imploded on her skin at his touch.

_Get over yourself, Katniss._

He suddenly held his hand up excitedly. "If you have nothing on, you can always come to the rehearsal. It's our first run through with costumes, gives you an insider look. Plus you can be a little more objective and honest, because right now we all just think everything is amazing in it." She felt the grimace almost involuntarily creep over her face, and watched as the excitement in his eyes faded. "You don't want to come?"

She couldn't deal with the level of hurt in his voice - over a damned play! - and shook her head. "No, no, I'd...I'd love to." _Dammit._ "What time?"

"It starts at ten," he told her, then pushed up off the seat - _don't look at his arms, Katniss, don't look at his arms _- stretching as he did so - _oh god don't look at his back, don't look at his back_. "I'll see you later?"

"See you later," she echoed.

She already knew a Saturday morning in an auditorium with a bunch of teenagers and Peeta Mellark was a bad idea.

* * *

Friday morning started like any other.

Until 5th period, when Clove was waiting outside her classroom door, bouncing around erratically. And considering the only bouncing Clove normally did was on the spot before a run, Katniss knew something was up.

She didn't expect the gaudy looking bauble that graced Clove's ring finger as she waved her hand enthusiastically in front of Katniss' face.

"...And if you hadn't been _so _not his type, we never would have hooked up and oh my god I never expected this and I mean we've only been dating for 5 months, but it's so right..." She vaguely heard Clove's words - to be honest they were so unlike the normally bitchy, sarcastic ones Katniss was used to hearing from her that she was almost suspicious this Clove was a pod person - but she wasn't ingesting them. Not properly.

_Even god-dammed Clove Anderson could find a guy, and here she was mooning over a boy like a love-struck teenager._

"Wow, that's great, Clove. I'm really happy for you and the ass- Cato. You and Cato," She replied, once Clove's babbling had ceased. She smiled, a thin-lipped, brittle one and turned on her heel, heading towards the music rooms. She couldn't even begin to describe how she was feeling, but she knew she was going to need a Saturday night date with Madge, a rom-com she could ridicule and a mountain of Ben and Jerry's.

* * *

"_I just don't want them to change me__, if I'm going to die I still want to be me."_

Katniss stared at the stage, not wanting to look away. These kids – and they were only 16 or 17, for crying out loud - were _good_. She was completely sucked in.

The play, she was certain, was going to be a hit.

"What do you think of it?" She felt the warm breath at her ear, and she grit her teeth as it sent a tremor down her spine. She turned to see Peeta crouched beside her, his arms full with a box that looked like it contained nothing but rocks. His blue eyes shone with excitement.

"They're terrific, the rehearsal is going really well," she admitted. "And the sets look great."

"Thanks," Peeta grinned. "I'm really happy with it all. Makes me feel like a proper artist."

"You want to be a proper artist?" she asked.

He shook his head. "Nah. I'm pretty good with painting, but I need to be out there, interacting with people. I found if I locked myself up in the studio for too long, I went a bit nuts." He glanced up at the stage, watched the two teenage love interests continue to read through the scene, and indicated with his head towards the auditorium doors. "I have another box back here that I need to take back to my classroom. Do you think you could grab it for me?"

Katniss shrugged and rose from her seat. "Sure, why not?"

She moved up the path beside him, picking up the box on the way, and followed him to the art room he occupied just down the hall. She'd never stepped inside, and was surprised at how immaculate it was. The walls were covered in bright pieces of artwork, and a number of small sculptures rested on a low-lying cabinet, but otherwise, it looked like any other old classroom.

"I, uh….this wasn't what I expected," she announced, dumping the box on his desk and resting against it. "It's so….normal."

Peeta laughed. "Yeah, this isn't where the action happens. We do all our work through there." He pointed to a door at the other end of the room. "This is just for exams and attendance and all that boring stuff." He put his box in the corner of the room, and followed suit with the one she had carried, before returning and sitting on the desk beside her. "Thanks for your help."

"Not a problem," she replied. Her heart pounded in her chest – this was the first time she'd been alone with him, and oh god, he smelt good. She needed to think of something, anything to stop herself from…

"So I-"

"What-"

They both laughed awkwardly as they talked over the top of the other, and Katniss gestured towards him. "You first."

"I was just going to say that I've really enjoyed getting to know you better the last few months."

_Uh-oh._

"Uh, yeah. Me too," Katniss replied warily.

"I mean, you've made me feel really welcome here."

"Erm, I'm glad….."

"I mean, the students kept talking about how great you are, and I was hoping to get to know the elusive Miss Everdeen a little more after our first meeting, and then you walked into the auditorium…." She turned to him then, wanting to try and determine where he was going with this.

He looked nervous, a little wary. His fingers were tapping out a rhythm on the desk, only millimetres from hers. The room suddenly felt stifling, felt like all the air had been sucked out of it. He'd never been so god-damned attractive.

_Oh what the hell,_ she thought, and reached up, yanking at the front of his shirt and pulling his mouth to hers. Not even his yelp of surprise stopped her.

It was so long since she'd done this, so long since she'd felt someone's lips on hers that she worried she was doing it wrong. But she figured she was doing ok when she felt his arms slip around her, pulling her to him so she was crushed against his chest, his tongue teasing and tangling against hers. She heard a moan and would have been mortified to know it was her, if she'd even realised.

His hand slid up the back of her shirt, fingers dusting and kneading against the bare skin. She didn't even put up a fight when he managed to lay her down across his desk, didn't even complain when a pencil dug into her back.

All she knew was that this was glorious, and she never wanted to let him go.

Lips danced across collarbones, hands fought against clothing that stood in their way. She felt him, hard against her thigh, and her legs shifted almost involuntarily so that he was cradled between them. They both let out a hiss at the contact, and Katniss looked up at him almost in shock.

His eyes were the deepest blue she'd ever seen, hooded and full of what she could only assume was lust. He eyed her hungrily, like she was water and he was dying of thirst.

Water.

H2O.

Science.

_Teacher._

_He was meant to be chaperoning._

_He's young._

_Oh my god._

She sat up with a yelp, pushing him off her so he stumbled backwards, bumping into a tall filing cabinet. His mouth opened in shock, but she beat him to it, scrabbling at her blouse so that it sat properly.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, that was so inappropriate, and I'm sorry. Oh god, you're a teacher…." she babbled to herself, unable to look at him. He strode back to her, breathing heavily, and lifted her chin with his hand.

"I wanted that too, Katniss. Don't brush this off. I've wanted you for so long, I've wanted to tell you for ages-"

"Don't!" she snapped. "This is so wrong! You're so young! And-"

"Young? I'm, like 4 years younger than you, Katniss. What the hell does that have to do with anything? And there's nothing at this school that says we can't date."

"I know, but….." she ran her hands through her hair, trying to turn away, but he wouldn't let her. "I'm no good for you, Peeta. I suck at relationships and dating, and I've got baggage and…ugh. Just….I can't." Her eyes looked up at him pleadingly, and after a moment he let her go, his hands dropping to his sides as his eyes filled with hurt.

She fled from the room, leaving him – and her dignity – behind.

She needed that ice-cream more than ever now.

* * *

"And it's not even like I _want_ the asshole, her announcement just threw me for a loop. It's just...It's been like 6 months since I went on a date. And..."

Madge shoved the spoon in the quart of cookie dough, and placed it on the coffee table between them. She'd readily agreed to spending her Saturday night at Katniss', considering Gale was having a poker night and she had no desire to play beer wench. She tucked her hair behind her ear and looked at Katniss straight on.

"You asked us not to. I specifically remember you pretty much put an embargo on dating, so we had to respect that."

Katniss shrugged. "I know, I know. But..." She twisted her braid around her hand and tugged. "I dunno. I can't explain it. It was just weird when Clove started giggling like a valley girl." She looked up guiltily, and before she even realised it, the words were tumbling out. She'd been hanging onto them all afternoon, hadn't been able to get the images of them together out of her head. "I kissed Peeta Mellark while I was at play rehearsals today."

Madge practically fell off her chair. "Holy crap, Katniss! Way to spring that on me!"

"Don't make a big deal out of it," Katniss warned, cringing. "It was an accident. I kissed him, I apologised, and left."

"What?! Why? Why did you apologise? You've _never_ done anything like that before, you know, made the first move, and the guy is hot!"

"He's 23, Madge!"

"So fucking what? He's nice, a great teacher, has a fine ass and he's...ugh, Kat, I'm not even going to get into that any more. Who cares if he's 23?"

"I do," Katniss said stubbornly, spooning another bite of ice-cream into her mouth forcefully. "And he's a teacher anyway."

"I repeat, so?"

"This is really annoying," Katniss warned.

"I know," Madge countered, and sighed. "Do you like him?"

Katniss glanced away, unwilling to tell Madge that what she'd felt when he'd pressed her down onto the desk, she'd never felt before. That only the knowledge that his chaperoning was for similar reasons to what they were doing right that minute, was the only thing that allowed sanity to break back through. So she lied.

"Not like that," she said softly. "Not enough to date."

Madge nodded, then leant forward, resting a hand on Katniss' knee. "Look, I know a really nice guy. He's a friend of Gale's. Would you let me organise something? It might...get you out of this funk. It could be fun."

Katniss stared into the carton of ice-cream in front of her, and sighed. _Why not? It was better than moping, or thinking about Peeta._

"Fine," she agreed. "And I mean, at least you have better taste than Clove."

Madge snorted. "That's an understatement."

* * *

She successfully avoided Peeta all week. There were no awkward conversations, no moments where she had to stare into his blue eyes and remember them hovering above her.

She was surprised how empty her week felt.

But she pushed it aside, and focused on her date with Thom. _Thom_, she repeated. _Dark hair, dark eyes, tall. Quiet. Works with Gale. _

This would be fine. At least she'd heard of him before.

She smoothed her hands down the thin, dark green jersey knit of the dress she'd yanked from the back of her closet, and tweaked at the hair she had left unbound. She glanced in the rear-view mirror and dabbed on some lip gloss, making sure the eyeliner she'd applied with a shaking hand - she was useless at that shit, she really was - was still in place. At least she looked half decent.

Stepping from the car, and locking it behind her, she walked briskly over to the door of the restaurant, her short heels tapping on the pavement. It echoed the nervous drum of her heart.

The hostess smiled at her as she walked in, and ran a finger down the reservation listings as Katniss mumbled out the booking. "Ah yes, Undersee, party of two. Your date is already here, Ms Undersee."

"Oh, I'm not….Actually, never mind," Katniss sighed. She wasn't about to explain that she was on a blind-ish date to the hostess. She followed the young girl through the winding restaurant, happy that the table seemed to be at the back, out of the way. There would be nothing more awkward than a blind date in the middle of the restaurant.

"Here's your table, Ms, enjoy your evening," the hostess announced, and returned to the door, allowing Katniss a view of the table.

_Holy shit._

"Peeta?" She exclaimed, her eyes wide. The look on his face was priceless, almost exactly a mirror image of what she imagined hers to be. She didn't take her gaze away from him as she felt her phone vibrate in her purse, and as she reached in to fish it out.

She glanced at the message, and swore under her breath.

_Madge: Damn right I have better taste than Clove. And you're a terrible liar, btw. Enjoy._


	2. Chapter 2

_Katniss: Answer your phone_

_Madge: Pffft. No_

_Katniss: I am going to kill you_

_Madge: Stop texting me and go speak to your date. FFS, Katniss, pull your head in. He's hot._

_Katniss: Shut up. Did he agree to this?_

_Madge: He knew as much as you. Go away. I'm not answering any more texts._

Katniss sighed, and dropped the phone back in her purse. As soon as she'd read Madge's first text she'd stuttered out an excuse to use the bathroom, and had left Peeta - practically dumbstruck - alone at their table.

She couldn't believe Madge had done this.

She glanced at herself in the bathroom mirror, surprised at the flush that spread across her cheeks, at how bright her eyes were. She was certain it was the embarrassment, and had nothing to do with how hot Peeta had looked in a pale blue dress shirt, the top button undone and the sleeves rolled up to his elbows.

Nothing at all.

She brushed a hand through her hair - instantly hating what she thought was such a silly, girly gesture - and took a few deep breaths. Steeling herself, she pushed open the door, strode through the restaurant as purposefully as possible, and slid into her seat across from Peeta. A partially shredded napkin rested on the table in front of him.

"Sorry about that," she said quietly. He shrugged.

"It's ok. I, uh, guess you're as surprised as I am," he replied with a small smile.

"You could say that." She glanced around them, making sure no-one was paying them any attention. "What did Madge say to you to get you here?"

Peeta cleared his throat, and Katniss was surprised. She'd never seen him nervous before. "She, um, told me that it was about time I got out after involving myself in the play so much and that she knew this great girl..."

"Girl," Katniss snorted. She rolled her eyes.

"I'm sure Madge meant it as a compliment," he told her.

"I'm sure she did," Katniss replied wryly, then glanced away. "So you were interested in this great 'girl', were you?"

Peeta shrugged. "I didn't know anything about her, but trusted Madge and figured why the hell not? After last week with us at school, and...I mean..." He trailed off, and blew out a breath, resigned. "Look, Katniss, you can go if you want, you don't have to stick around. I won't be offended. I just don't want you to be uncomfortable."

Katniss opened her mouth, then closed it again. He was giving her an easy way out, giving her the option to leave, and to go home and send Madge more annoying texts. But as she began to accept, she found she didn't want to.

Peeta Mellark hadn't left her mind since the moment he'd laid her down on his desk and kissed her like his life depended on it. And against her better judgement, she didn't want to get him out of her mind.

"No. No, it's ok. I'll stay," she replied quietly.

"Really?" The change on his face was immediate, almost stunning in its joy.

"Yeah. I mean, we're friends, right? Things don't have to be awkward."

"Uh, sure," he agreed. "We can have a nice dinner between friends."

"Good." She nodded, and opened the menu she had so far ignored. "What do you say we order some drinks then?"

"Sounds like a plan," Peeta grinned. His dimple flashed, his lips quirked. Any nervousness he'd had was obviously gone.

_Oh god, she was in trouble._

* * *

"But seriously, her wig makes her six feet tall. And it's like this fuchsia colour, so you see it, and her, a mile away," Peeta laughed, sipping at his beer.

"And you're not responsible for the costumes, of course," Katniss replied, leaning back in her seat and folding her arms across her too-full belly. A good steak was her weakness, and she'd devoured it happily, as Peeta had regaled her with more stories of the rehearsals, and as she'd filled him in on Clove's unexpected engagement. She'd been surprised at how easily they'd talked, as if their kiss had never happened, just like they used to on their lunch breaks. Maybe she could do this. Maybe she could go back to just staring at his ass from afar and not thinking about getting him naked.

Much.

"Nope, not at all. I do the sets, I refuse to go anywhere near the costumes," He was saying, and put his glass back on the table, resting his fingers against the wood grain table and tapping out a melody. Katniss vaguely realised it was the same one he'd tapped out against his desk the week before.

"Are you looking forward to opening night?" She asked, as she continued to stare at his hand.

He nodded enthusiastically. "I really am. The kids have done a great job. You should come along."

Katniss glanced up at him. "I, um...probably will. Rue would want me there."

"She would." He paused, then looked down at the table. "I'd like you to be there too." It was the first direct comment he'd made towards her about _them_, the first one outside of general work conversation. She supposed it hadn't been the ideal scenario for a date - talking work, and not personal particulars - but it also wasn't the usual blind date either.

"I..." She didn't really know what to say, but he jumped in quickly before she found her voice.

"Look, I'm sorry about last weekend, Katniss, I really am. But I don't regret it. Not one bit. I wish you hadn't ignored me this week, wish you'd talked to me about it."

"I didn't know what to say," she admitted. "I still don't."

He glanced over both of his shoulders, then back at her. "Can I tell you what I want to say then? Honestly?"

Katniss took a deep breath, not really sure if she wanted him to or not. But she nodded anyway. He leant forward, resting his forearms on the table and staring at her intently. His voice was low and deep and smooth as he began to speak. "I've been dreaming about you for months. I think about you when I should be concentrating on painting a set, when I should be teaching the kids about Van Gogh and Michelangelo. I think about you. And me. And for the last week all I've been able to think about is you, on my desk, under me. Or over me. However we ended up. It didn't matter."

Her mouth dropped open.

"You don't have to say anything," he told her, leaning back, his voice back to its usual level. "I just wanted to be honest with you."

She raised an eyebrow, still almost in shock at how blunt he'd been with her. "I still don't know what to say," she said quietly. "You're...very sure of yourself."

"No. Just honest. I want you, Katniss. I don't see the point in lying about it. Not anymore."

"You're 23. You're so young."

"You're 27. You're so old."

Her brow creased in consternation, until she saw the grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. "You're making fun of me, aren't you?" she snapped.

"Yep," he replied. "It's just a little too easy." He leant back in his seat, and she could feel his legs bump against hers as he stretched his out. "I don't care how old you are, Katniss, or how old I am. It's just four damned years. When you come to the same conclusion, just let me know."

Katniss stared at him. He was confident without being cocky, charming without being smarmy. His smile was genuine, his eyes honest. And he had barely even looked at their waitress, let alone tried to grope her.

Peeta Mellark made her heart thud and her pulse race and her stomach clench. And part of her had a hard time not wanting him at all.

"Urghfjk," she mumbled incoherently, then cleared her throat. She picked up the menu, primarily to hide her inflamed face. "Let's order dessert, shall we?"

* * *

"He said _what_?"

"Shit, Madge, I am not repeating myself," Katniss hissed. They had about 5 minutes until first period, and she'd already told Madge a slightly abridged version of her date with Peeta. "Plus I'm still pissed with you for going behind my back. You're lucky I told you anything."

Madge rolled her eyes, flipping her long straight ponytail over her shoulder. "Oh come on. A guy tells you he pretty much wants to bend you backwards over his desk and you're still complaining?"

Katniss glared at her, yanking her purse off the table in the staff room. "Don't say crap like that."

"Why not? It's true. Why do you think I set this up? You're the worst liar I've ever seen, and I've had to put up with his puppy dog glances towards you all semester."

"Puppy dog glances?" Katniss repeated.

Madge sighed, and her voice gentled. "I should have known you wouldn't have noticed. Kat, I wouldn't have done that on Saturday night if I didn't think it was worth it. He's made it clear to you he's interested, even though it's been obvious to me for a long while. I just...I want you to be happy."

"I am happy," Katniss argued, though it seemed feeble to her own ears. "You're just in that newlywed glow and you want everyone to be the same."

Madge glanced down at the shiny gold band that rested beside her engagement ring, a new addition only a month old, and shrugged. "So? It's good, Kat, real good. Don't let your own family stuff put you off from Peeta."

"You make it sound like he's The One or some crap like that," Katniss sighed.

"Maybe he is," Madge winked. She glanced at the clock, and slipped her own bag over her shoulder. "We'd better get to class, Miss Everdeen. Wouldn't want to be late. Who knows what kind of punishments teachers hand out lately." She winked, and walked out; Katniss rolled her eyes and followed her.

* * *

Over the week, school continued as normal. Buzz for the premier of the school play was at fever pitch, and if you didn't already have a ticket, then you were damn well out of luck. Katniss tried to fall back into the easy rhythm of interacting with Peeta, but the more she spoke to him, the more his words from over dinner seemed to play on her mind, and the more she realised there was no way they could go back to the way they had been.

_And who the hell was so upfront about getting someone naked, over dinner, in a public restaurant anyway? No wonder she was so frazzled._

"Hey Miss Everdeen!" Rue had stopped in front of her in the middle of the busy hallway, although Katniss had barely noticed.

"Hey Rue," she replied, shaking her head and telling herself she was just being stupid. "Nervous about Saturday?"

Rue grinned, and fell into step beside Katniss. "Nah. Miss Jones has done a great job, plus the sets look awesome, which means the whole show will look awesome. Mr M is the shit, really. Oh!" She flushed, and raised a hand to her mouth. "I shouldn't have said that!"

Katniss laughed. "It's ok, Rue. You're 16. I'm pretty certain you let loose with a couple of choice words when you want to. Just try to keep it to a minimum at school, ok?"

"Sure thing," Rue agreed. The bell rang, loud and shrilly. "Ugh, I have math now with Mr Thread. Man, that guy is a _douche_."

Katniss couldn't help but laugh again. "I'll see you later, Rue. Don't be late to class." She kept grinning to herself as the young girl scooted off, as the halls emptied. She was thankful, right now, for a free period.

Walking into the teachers' lounge, she avoided the coffee, instead plugging a couple of quarters into the machine for a coke. She sipped on it as she stared out the window onto the open courtyard, and vaguely thought about the exams she still needed to grade, the leak on her car that needed checking out, the bolt she needed to install on the door leading to the back porch at home.

Anything but Peeta, really. She didn't have time for that.

* * *

_Pros:_

_Cute_

_Funny_

_Nice_

_Hot_

_Charming_

_Friendly_

_Good teacher_

_Smart_

_Can talk, not just grunt_

_Doesn't grope waitresses_

_His kisses_

_Cons:_

_Teacher_

_Young_

_Co-worker_

_Has a stupid dimple_

_Smile is too perfect_

_Those dumb blue eyes_

_The way he rolls his sleeves up_

_His ass_

"Gah!" Katniss crumpled the ball of paper up into a ball, throwing it towards her coffee table, where it landed in the middle of a bunch of flowers Prim had sent her. She groaned, but couldn't be bothered to get up and remove it.

A pros and cons list - Madge's latest idea to help her get her shit together after a week of unsuccessfully trying to stop thinking of the guy - wasn't working. All it did was make her think of Peeta even more, and in the end the entire list read more like a tick box for her ideal guy. It pissed her off deluxe, and had royally ruined her quiet Friday night at home. She'd never wanted something like this, was quite happy on her own, and looked forward to the day she was ready to buy a kitten and become a cat lady of sorts.

_(No she wasn't. Who was she kidding?)_

With a sigh of frustration, she pulled herself off the couch and headed for the shower. Maybe she could drown the thoughts out.

* * *

The next night, she was cursing herself for agreeing to sit with other teachers for the opening of the play. Madge, well she was fine, because she was mostly preoccupied with smoothing an errant hair that kept falling over her new husband's forehead. Chantel Lyme, the economics teacher, was perfectly pleasant as well, but she was sitting two seats away, so Katniss couldn't really speak to her anyway.

If she was honest, it was just Clove sitting beside her, and her incessant nattering that was driving her insane. If she had to hear one more time about how she couldn't wait to try on wedding dresses, she was certain she was going to punch the woman. And because she actually did want to sit here and watch the play, she had to grit her teeth and clutch onto her knees like her life depended on it. Katniss didn't exactly want to be the first teacher kicked off school grounds for fighting.

_But dammit, if Clove didn't shut up in about 2.5 seconds..._

Thankfully, the lights began to dim and an almost haunting instrumental piece of music floated from the speakers. The curtain rose and Katniss forgot all about Clove in an instant.

"And then Cato said if I really wanted 6 bridesmaids, then he was ok with that. I mean, I don't even know if I want 6 - my sister is a little bitch and serves her right if I don't pick her, but..."

Katniss glanced at Madge, who rolled her eyes and tucked her hand into Gale's. Clove had started on her wedding tirade the minute the theatre lights rose and they began filing out. Katniss didn't even get to digest the ending of the play, or consider the lump that had inadvertently risen in her throat as the lead female basically screwed over the boy who was so in love with her. Even while she was thinking how wrong the girl was, a little voice inside her was saying _but you'd do the same thing_.

But no, she was listening to Clove again, and she had to cut loose before she lost her shit. "Uh, guys? I know I said I'd come for coffee or whatever, but I'm kind of beat. I might just head home if that's ok?"

"Aw, but Katniss, I wanted to talk to you about good flowers for my wedding!"

_Kill me now. Who was this Clove? Give her the bitchy, eye-rolling version any day._

"Sorry Clove. Maybe next time?" _Maybe never?_ She turned to Madge and Gale, who were both glaring at her, and Chantel, who was typing away frantically on her phone. "Is that ok guys?"

"Sure, Katniss," Madge replied through clenched teeth. "I'd hate for you to feel any worse."

Katniss crossed her eyes at Madge, earning a chuckle from Gale, and nodded her head. "Thanks guys. I appreciate it. Nothing an early night in bed won't fix." She waved goodbye and walked to the other end of the car park, where her old car was parked.

And old was the operative word when the damn thing groaned and sighed and chugged and refused to start up. She thumped her head against the steering wheel and screamed. This was the last thing she needed. Stuck in the school car park in the middle of the night, home a half an hour hike away and she was wearing ill-advised (by Madge) pumps. Shit.

She knew she should have got the leak seen to.

With a frustrated moan, she shoved open her door and yanked the keys out of the ignition, dropping them on the seat and stalking around to the hood. She popped it open and stared at it, realising she had no idea what she was doing. Cars were definitely not her thing.

"Car trouble?" His voice melted out of the darkness like chocolate and dammit, she cursed the frisson that danced down her spine. Katniss half turned to see Peeta, hand in his pocket, backpack slung over one shoulder. He was in jeans, a plain white t-shirt, with a dark blue and red checked flannel shirt left open. Probably more comfortable when racing around backstage, she mused, though if she was honest it really wasn't the first thing she thought of when she looked at him in it.

_Focus, Katniss!_

"How'd you guess?" She retorted, and hated how petulant she sounded. "Maybe I just like chilling in the car park at 11 at night."

Peeta laughed, dropping his bag to the asphalt and peering down into the engine beside her. "The fact you just said 'chilling in the car park' says it all."

"Am I too old to say that kind of stuff?"

He glanced at her, raising an eyebrow. "Don't pull the age crap, Katniss. We've already established how little that matters to anything." He pushed the sleeves of his shirt up even higher over his elbows, and leant over the hood. "Ah, shit. The light from the moon is good, but not good enough for this." He pulled his phone out from his pocket and found the flashlight app, aiming it into the engine. She could instantly see the faint wisps of smoke rising from a hose, the water bubbling from it slowly but steadily.

"Uh yeah. Well that doesn't look like something either of us can fix right now. I can take you home if you like, and you can call Triple A in the morning?" Peeta offered.

Katniss sighed. "Yeah, ok. I guess."

"Or, you know, I could just leave you here," he replied easily. Katniss opened her mouth to retort indignantly, but then she caught the smirk, the unsuccessful biting of his lip, in the faint light of the moon.

"You're such a smart ass," she complained, and he laughed.

"You're such an easy target, Katniss," he replied. He stepped towards her, shoving his phone and his hands in his pockets. "Would you like me to take you home?"

"Yes please," she said quietly. She froze as his hand reached out, swept gently across her cheek.

"You had...some dirt or oil or something," he told her. She nodded numbly, unable to move or think as his hand slipped into her hair, tucking it behind her ear. "I guess we'd better go, huh?" She nodded again, not trusting her mouth. _She probably wouldn't be able to form a coherent sentence anyway. _

Peeta stepped back, reaching for his bag, and slinging it back over his shoulder. He unhooked the slim rod that held the hood up, dropping it down with a gentle thud. Katniss moved around him quickly, reaching into the car and yanking her purse out, and grabbed the keys from her seat. Her eyes locked on Peeta in her rear-view mirror, watching as his eyes travelled down, down...

She couldn't help the rush of pleasure or the snort that begged to escape when she realised he was staring at her ass.

She cleared her throat and straightened, turning and closing the door. She locked it, then tossed her keys into the purse. Peeta tipped his head to the left and led her to his car, a blue Prius; he pressed the button to unlock it, and she quickly got in the passenger side before he got the crazy idea to open the door for her or something.

"By the way," she said as he slid into his seat. "The play was great."

He threw a smile in her direction. "Thanks. I'm thrilled with how it went. Now how about that address?"

She murmured it to him, and he nodded, driving through the streets in comfortable silence. She was thankful for it. Her brain was already full of noise and jumbled thoughts and feelings.

_She both loved and hated being this close to him._

* * *

"I have that Nespresso stuff. Or tea. Or iced tea. Or coke," Katniss called, sticking her head in the fridge and perusing the contents. She closed her eyes.

_Oh god, what had she done? She'd invited him in for coffee._

_Oh god._

"Tea would be good. Milk, no sugar. Thanks," he said from behind her. She nodded, and shut the door, flicking the switch on for the kettle.

"I, uh, I'm just going to put my purse away," she mumbled, and slid around him. "You can take a seat in the lounge if you like." Katniss heard him hum in assent and moved down the short hallway to her bedroom, throwing her purse on her bed, before dropping beside it and bracing her head in her hands. Everything inside her buzzed and snapped and sparked being this close to him. It was ridiculous. She thought things and felt things and said things she didn't understand, wasn't completely comfortable with, whenever she was within 5 metres of Peeta. She just needed to get through half an hour tops of tea and conversation, then he could be on his way and she could go back to dreaming about him and not thinking about his comments in the restaurant while he sat in her kitchen.

With a sigh she pushed herself off the bed, kicking off the offending heels into the corner of her room. She tugged on the hem of her shirt, walking back towards her small living room.

And stopped short when she saw Peeta leaning against the arm of the couch, one leg crossed casually in front of the other, a crumpled piece of paper in his hand. And a shit eating grin on his face.

"Nooooooo," she groaned.

"I can't decide whether you like my sleeves rolled up or not," he said matter of factly. "Or whether my stupid dimple is going to cause you to eventually turn me down."

Katniss scowled at him, reaching over and ripping the piece of paper from his hands. "What the hell, Peeta? And who says this is about you anyway?"

He held up his hands in mock surrender. "I was just going to put it in the bin. I didn't think it belonged in a bunch of flowers."

"Fine. But who says this is about you?" She shot the offending - _mortifying!_ - piece of paper into the wire wastebasket that sat beside the tv unit.

"I think it's pretty obvious. Unless you've gone on a date with another young teacher with blue eyes from our school recently."

Katniss rolled her eyes, pushing past him and stomping into the kitchen. She yanked the cupboard above her head open, pulled two mugs from it and slammed them on the counter. She started as she felt his hand enclose hers, and helped her to close the cupboard gently.

"Don't be mad at me, Katniss. Or with yourself," he said quietly as he guided her hand back to the counter. He turned, opened the drawer and pulled out a teaspoon, grabbed the milk from the fridge and placed it beside the hand she was desperately trying to stop from trembling. She couldn't look at him as she dumped in the tea bags, poured the hot water into the mugs, and finished them with the milk. She slid his across the counter towards him, and picked hers up, raising it to her face like a shield as she finally looked up at him.

"I didn't mean to snap at you," she started. "It was just…personal. You just weren't meant to see that."

"I don't suppose I was," he agreed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to; but I did. Tell me, Katniss. Did the pros outweigh the cons?"

"You saw the cons," she snorted, her face colouring. "They were pretty pitiful."

"I dunno. They might be legitimate cons," he shrugged. "Why were you writing that anyway?"

Katniss sighed, sipping at the tea. She winced - she normally liked at least a little sugar, but really couldn't be bothered - before swallowing. "You sure you want to know?"

"Honesty = best policy," Peeta said simply.

"Madge suggested it so I could stop thinking about you," she muttered quickly

He smiled, sipping at his own tea. "You forget I'm a teacher, Katniss. I speak Rushed Mumble." He shrugged, eyeing her carefully. "Is it such a bad thing to be mildly interested in me?"

"No," Katniss replied honestly. "It is if I'm more than mildly interested."

He raised an eyebrow, setting his mug on the counter and taking the three steps towards her. He stopped barely a hairsbreadth away, his arms resting on either side of her on the counter and effectively blocking her in. She could smell him, that same delicious scent that had invaded her senses back in his classroom.

_Breathe, Katniss, breathe._

"I don't want to rush you, Katniss. I want you not to be worried enough by me that you feel like you need to do a pros and cons list. And while I'm kind of flattered," he grinned, that stupid dimple so prominent on her list staring her in the face, "I'll be more flattered the day you tell me you want me. No pros, no cons, no lists."

"I...I can't think when you're near me," she admitted, and glanced away. He raised his hand, his fingers gently resting under her chin and turning her back to face him.

"That's a good start," he said. "I generally can't think around you either." His lips were so close, she thought. So close she could feel his warm breath on her cheek. His lips barely brushed against the corner of her mouth before he stepped back, arms dropping limply to his sides. "I should go. But I want to take you to dinner, Katniss. A proper date this time, where we both know about it before hand. What do you say?"

She looked over at him, still trying to shake the feeling of him being so close. _He was serious. 100% seriously interested in her. _ She nodded almost dumbly.

"Sounds good. Next Friday. But first I'll see you Monday at school." She nodded again, and he smiled. "I'll let myself out. Oh, and by the way? Your kisses would make my pros list too. Sweet dreams, Katniss."

She listened to his footsteps down the hall, and the door as it closed behind him, before sagging against the counter.

_Sweet freaking dreams indeed._

* * *

_A/N - So this "one-shot" wouldn't leave me alone. Oops. ;) Hope you like_


	3. Chapter 3

Katniss ran, every breath she inhaled slicing down her throat like shards of glass, the cool morning air piercing her lungs. It didn't bother her, just made her run faster, push herself harder, until her limbs felt like jelly and her chest ached like a bitch.

But she had to do it. Anything, _anything,_ to get her mind off the embarrassment of Peeta finding her list last night. Even the buffer of a few hours sleep hadn't been enough to drag the mortification out of her - or ease the gnawing ache that had settled low in her belly and refused to abate.

She slowed to a jog as she made one final turn around the schools' track, watching as the fog that had shrouded the fields slowly began to dissipate. It was one of her favourite times of day - when half the town was still asleep, the sun was barely peeking over the mountains that provided such a picturesque backdrop to the school, and she was alone. Blissfully alone, with no students, no parents, no hot art teachers to distract her.

_Yeah, ok, so the art teacher part was a total lie, because he was definitely distracting her._

Katniss was still amazed she hadn't completely scared him off with her stupid list. But, she supposed, it said something for him that he hadn't run off screaming into the night. Even if he was attracted to her, and was interested in pursuing something with her, she'd expected it to be a completely different thing to find a list of faults about yourself from the person you claimed to want. Apparently that wasn't the case.

And not that they were even faults, so he really had no cause to complain anyway, she sighed to herself as she bent over to stretch out her calf. The muscles were warm and loose from the run, which had been exactly her idea when she'd found herself wide awake at 5am on a morning she normally allowed to be her only sleep-in a week.

He'd probably gotten a kick out of seeing a list of things she obviously couldn't get her mind off of, she thought, switching to her other leg. Which was stupid, because she didn't want them on her mind in the first place, let alone lingering long enough to be put on a con list.

_Li-arrrrrrr!_ The little voice in her head sing-songed.

She stamped her foot in annoyance at herself, then stalked over to the railing that she'd hung her jacket over. Slipping it on, she made for the carpark, where her pitiful car waited for her. It was past 6am; surely AAA would come now so she could at least get it to outside the mechanics.

Reaching into the pocket of her jacket for her phone, she pulled it out, selecting the emergency number she'd pre-programmed into it a long time ago - it was always second, right behind Prim's - and waited patiently for the operator to answer. 5 minutes later she was on the hood, prepared to wait the 20 minutes she'd been advised. With nothing to do but wait, Peeta's words to her over the last couple of weeks played out in her head.

"_I'll be more flattered the day you tell me you want me. No pros, no cons, no lists."_

"_All I've been able to think about is you, on my desk, under me. Or over me."_

"_I've wanted you for so long, I've wanted to tell you for ages."_

This was just stupid, she thought, clenching her arms tightly around her raised knees, her pulse tripping at the memories. She'd never ever had a reaction to a guy like this, not even to her ex-fiance. That had been….a mistake, she admitted, a university relationship that had dragged on for too long, and had gone that far because it was 'expected' of them. But he'd never made her heart jump that little bit faster, had never made her imagine stripping his clothes off in the middle of a school classroom, and she'd certainly never made a pro and con list for him.

All of which made her question her sanity. And remember how long it had been since she got laid.

With a sigh, she dropped her head onto her knees. Damned Peeta Mellark and his smiley-smiles and his dimples. They were going to be the death of her.

* * *

"Katniss, you need to buy another dress."

"What? Why?"

"Why? I am going to take a wild guess and say that on the 'blind date'," Madge raised her fingers in air quotes to emphasise the fake blind date, "You wore the green jersey. Which is a great dress, don't get me wrong. But I know that's your one and only date dress, and you can't wear it again."

Madge had a point; it was one she'd known all week, but had studiously ignored. She'd kind of hoped Peeta would just take her to Burger King or something, and she could get away with jeans.

"I know, but-"

"And he's not going to take you to a burger joint, Katniss, so don't even say jeans to me, ok?"

Katniss scowled. "Bitch," she retorted with little heat. There was no-one - save Prim - who could see through her better than Madge.

Madge laughed. "Kat, I know you, and I know that's exactly what you were thinking. Tell me I'm wrong."

"You're wrong."

"Liar." Madge smirked, crumpling the wrapper from her now-eaten sandwich, and tossing it towards the bin. Having an athletic husband had done jack shit for her coordination, and it missed by a mile. Katniss eyed it disdainfully, promising herself one day she'd teach Madge how to aim. "Now, after work, we're gonna go shopping. And we are going to find you the hottest dress you can buy, that says 'Oh Peeta, you're so hot and I want you', as well as 'I'm a lady, treat me like one please'."

Katniss rolled her eyes, but couldn't help the chuckle that escaped. "God, how does Gale ever go shopping with you?" she wondered.

Madge smirked. "Because I go to Victoria's Secret while we're out, duh." She raised an eyebrow. "Maybe we should go there on our shopping adventure too."

"Maybe you should quit while you're ahead," Katniss warned. She sighed, then glanced at the clock. She knew, with absolute certainty, that because she was going shopping and it was the last thing she wanted to do, her afternoon classes would fly by. And she was right.

In no time at all, school had finished, Madge had dragged her around the mall, and now she was home, a half dozen bags on her lounge, full of things she wondered if she'd ever even use after this dumb date. She grabbed a beer from her fridge, propping herself up on the kitchen counter and staring out at the offending evidence of her shopping trip. The dress Madge had eyed immediately was spot on, she had to admit. A soft wrap dress that fell just above her knee, the v-neckline flattering but not too booby, and that complimented her slim figure. The various shades of orange and cream in the geometric pattern were warm against her olive skin, and she had to agree that the nude pumps Madge had practically forced her to buy - _another damned pair of heels_ - would look perfect with it. She'd drawn the line at Victoria's Secret though. There was no way Peeta would see anyone's secret on Friday night, let alone Victoria's.

New make-up - which Madge swore would help with her shitty attempts at applying eyeliner - had found their way onto her credit card, and an amber and bone-coloured bracelet was her one concession to jewellery. After that purchase, Katniss had firmly announced that that was it. Take it or leave it, she was done shopping; this was as good as it was going to get for her date. She just had two more days to stress about it, that was all.

She took a long, hard pull from the beer.

* * *

"I hope you like the restaurant I've picked." The voice was low, and tickled the skin on her neck from where a mouth was pressed closely to her ear. Katniss jumped and whirled around, having to bite her lip from expelling a screech that would have put a bunch of her female students spotting a spider to shame. She held a hand to her speeding heart to see Peeta standing there - in the middle of her lab, no less - a grin on his face, and a textbook tucked under his arm. Her skin still prickled from the warmth of his breath.

"Dammit, Peeta, you scared the shit out of me," she accused. Her heart pounded, but she couldn't look at him, not right now, and instead turned back to the microscope she'd been looking through. Root samples that one of the kids had brought in had kept her occupied for the last hour, though she knew it was well past 4pm, and she really needed to go home. Especially now.

"Sorry. But I couldn't help myself," he apologised, though he didn't sound it in the slightest. "I'm surprised you're still here."

"What's so surprising? You're still here too," she muttered, eyes fixed through the scope.

"Well, yeah, some of the set needed a bit of a touchup after last Saturday. Got the final two shows this weekend."

"Mmm-hmmm."

"And I had to walk past here from the auditorium, happened to catch a glimpse of you through the window…"

"You always happen to catch a glimpse of me through that window, Mellark?" she asked, raising her eyes to him, and her eyebrow with it.

He had the grace to glance away, and then shrugged. "Call it what you want, Everdeen," he replied in a similar tone.

She snorted, then glanced back at the samples she'd been working on. "Ugh, I can't focus on this anymore," she sighed. "I may as well go home." She felt his eyes on her as she methodically packed up the equipment.

"Oh, you got your car sorted?" Peeta asked, and she faltered at his question. The few times they'd bumped into each other in the halls this week, it had been awkward and forced - on her side, he could talk until he was blue in the face - and simple chatter about school projects. Not her car.

"Dammit," she muttered more to herself. She'd forgotten she still didn't have it back. She'd caught a lift with Madge for the first half of the week, then had had the impromptu shopping trip, but had turned her down today, her mind on her work and not even thinking of the fact her bomb of a car was still in with Brutus. _Crap_. "Ah, no. I was just going to walk home today." A quick glance at her feet made her sigh in relief at the comfortable flats she wore.

"You sure? I can give you a lift-"

"No!" She practically screamed it, before she took a deep breath, and stored the equipment away. "No, thank you. A walk will do me good. Get some fresh air, you know? I like being outdoors, and I don't get to nearly enough being inside most of the day." She looked up at him, to see that his face had fallen. _Shit. He looked like a kid who'd had his candy taken away._ "I'm not trying to be...difficult or anything, Peeta. I'm seriously happy walking. Walking home at 4.30 in the afternoon is a little different to walking home late at night. And anyway, uh, we have dinner tomorrow night, remember? Why use up all that awkward car conversation today when we can save it for then?"

He smirked, and she knew she had him back. "You're right. Awkward conversation is going to be a great way to start the date. A 7pm pick up from your place is good? Just in case I don't catch you between classes tomorrow?"

"7pm is good," she confirmed. "I, uh, I'll see you then."

"See you then, Katniss," he agreed smoothly, before turning and walking back out of her classroom door. He tossed a wink back over his shoulder as he went.

_The little shit._

* * *

_It's gonna be fine. It's gonna be fine. It's gonna be fine._

Ding-dong!

_Holy crap._

Katniss took a deep breath, and had one more glance in the mirror. She didn't look too bad at all, even if she did say so herself, and had to begrudgingly admit the makeup had been a good decision. Again. Dammit, what the hell did she do with her dating life before Madge had infiltrated it?

_Oh that's right. Failed miserably._

Ding-dong!

"Gah!" She turned - carefully - on her heels, trotting awkwardly down the hall towards the front door. She peered through the peephole first, just to confirm it was Peeta. Fighting the urge to bite her lip self-consciously, she slowly opened the door. He grinned, and didn't hide the fact his eyes slid from the top of her head to the tips of her toes.

"Katniss, you look...radiant," he told her. "And in my favourite colour no less."

_Oh for fucks sake, Madge,_ Katniss hissed in her head, but managed to keep the scowl from her face.

"Ah thanks. You look pretty damn good yourself," she replied, and she wasn't lying. Dark jeans that looked like they had been made specifically for him, a white button up shirt, and a slim cut blazer made him look like a damn catalogue model. She vaguely wondered why he was at her door.

"Thanks. I brought you these." He pulled his arm from around his back, holding out a bunch of bright yellow sunflowers. "I didn't know what you liked, and that bunch of flowers you had inside were a mixed bunch..." he coughed as Katniss blushed at the thought of what else had been with those flowers, then continued. "But I got these because...well they reminded me of you."

"Huh?"

"Sunflowers. They reminded me of- oh never mind. I can wait here if you want to put them in water or something?"

Katniss nodded, almost closing the door in his face to go back into her apartment before she stopped herself. She moved quickly down the hall, grabbing the vase Prim's flowers had once rested in, filling it with water and dumping the bright, happy looking flowers into it. She wrinkled her nose - a sunflower she certainly didn't think she was - grabbed her purse and went back out to him, where he was leaning against the wall, humming decidedly off-key.

"Ready," she muttered, closing the door behind her and locking it securely. "And thanks for the flowers."

"No problem," he replied with a grin. She didn't utter a word when he rested a hand on the small of her back to guide her to the elevator bank.

* * *

At first the car ride was, indeed, awkward. Just as she'd predicted.

He let her pick the station as soon as they got in, and gave a slight nod of approval as she stopped on a Mumford and Sons track. Then silence had reigned as they'd both listened to the song, both waiting for the other to start the conversation. And as Katniss had rarely willingly started a conversation in her life, the ball was most definitely in Peeta's court.

"So, uh….." he trailed off, then laughed. "Shit, this is awkward, just like you said."

"Hmmm-hmm," she murmured. "I'm good at calling things like that."

He chuckled again. "So, uh, anything exciting happen this week?"

"Nope."

"Want to hear about mine?"

"I suppose." _God, what was wrong with her? Oh thats right, a man who smelt like heaven was sitting on the other side of the console and she'd obviously left her brain at her front door._

She listened as he told her about the preparations for the final couple of performances of the play, and how one of his students had practically broken down in tears expressing her love of renaissance paintings as part of a presentation. Which Katniss found a little weird, but he thought was amazing, so she let him run with it.

He continued to talk, and though she listened, she started staring out the window at the passing landscape. They were well out of town now, and her brow furrowed, confused_. Where the hell was he taking her?_

"Uh, where the hell are you taking me?" She blurted, in the middle of him telling her about his upcoming sculpture unit with his tenth graders. She turned to him expectantly.

"I'm not a serial killer, I promise," Peeta said earnestly. "I just….got the feeling you'd want to steer clear of somewhere that might be frequented by people from school. I mean, not that I'm embarrassed by us or whatever, but…."

He trailed off, but she couldn't get her mind to move past us.

"No, no, that's good. You're right. I mean, this is just a date. We don't want people to get the wrong idea or anything, right?"

"Right," he agreed. "And anyway, the food here is the bomb, so I had to pick it."

Katniss snorted, then looked back out the window again. "I can't believe you just said "the bomb"."

""I can't believe you thought I was saying it seriously," he laughed, and she turned back, noticing the twinkle in his eyes.

"You ass," she muttered. He chuckled again, but let the conversation lag, driving the rest of the way in silence. Finally, outside a pretty stone building with fairy lights in the trees lining the drive and a wrought iron trellis surrounding the outside patio on the second floor, he pulled the car to a stop.

With her heart in her throat, she suddenly realised this wasn't an official first date for him. It was an _official first date_. And she felt the weight of pressure rest on her shoulders, because she wasn't good with those. Those were ones that ended with sweet kisses at the door, and his jacket over her shoulders from the cold. _Shiiiiit._

"I'm starved," she announced, working hard to keep the nerves out of her voice, and stepped out of the car. "Let's see just how good this food is."

* * *

It was, in short, amazing. The minute she'd stepped inside she knew she was in food heaven, the smell of meats and spices and a million different other flavours she couldn't even begin to place. The food listed in the menu had made her mouth water, and she'd had to refrain from ordering everything listed. He'd said she could, but she knew she risked vomiting all over his nice upholstery if she had. The jambalaya had, in the end, been enough for her.

Though she hadn't been able to turn down the powdery beignets and coffee that now sat between them.

"Ok, ok, you're right. The food here is the bomb," Katniss acquiesced, borrowing his phrase from earlier. Actually, she'd had to admit to herself, the whole night had been. The initial nerves she'd had when they arrived had dissipated the moment they'd sat down and he'd begun chatting with her just like he had at their last dinner. They'd talked about school, what shows they'd watched that week, and for the first time, tentatively ventured into the area of their families. It was almost like he had this uncanny ability to settle her, to calm her, to make her feel…..safe.

It was super, super odd.

He snickered. "You know I'm never going to get tired of teasing you, right? At least not until you admit age isn't an issue."

"And what if I said it wasn't?"

"I'd say you were just saying that to stop me teasing you."

She stuck her tongue out, then immediately blushed, realising how immature it probably was. "Alright, alright, fine." She picked up one of the beignets and bit into it, relishing the taste. "So anyway, tell me how on earth I remind you of sunflowers?"

He shrugged, taking a sip of his coffee before answering. "Well, at first you seem kind of enclosed, almost like you want to hide and you don't want anyone to see you. But then there's something that inspires you, or makes you happy and you just kind of...open up. Like sunflowers do when they see the sun. You know? You'll scowl and be all grumpy - which is kind of a turn on, I'm not going to lie - but then you'll smile and everything about you lights up. Like when you interact with Rue. Or when you talked about your sister before. You're as proud as hell of her, and it shows."

Katniss was frozen, her cup suspended in mid-air after she'd begun raising it to her lips. No one, ever, had described her that way.

"Ah shit," Peeta groaned, "And now I've totally scared you off." He went to put his cup back on the table, but misjudged, spilling the rest of its contents on the sleeve of his blazer. "Oh god, like this could get any worse! I'm ruining everything!" He fumbled with the cup, finally managing to put it back on the flat surface. He began shrugging the jacket off, the strong dark liquid seeping quickly into the fabric.

Katniss watched as he yanked it off, and began rubbing at the stain with his napkin; as his lips firmed and his jaw tensed, she realised it was the first time she'd seen him that frustrated. She placed her own cup down - carefully - before the first snort of laughter escaped. He glanced up at her, frowning. This time it was a giggle that came loose, one that was decidedly girly, and didn't sound like her at all. She held her breath, willing the laugh that threatened to explode from her to abate.

"What?" Peeta complained.

"N-n-nothing," Katniss managed to gasp out, then she couldn't stop it. The laugh was low, full bodied, and came out of her in waves. "Oh god, Peeta, you should see your face! You look so worried, and it's only a little coffee! It's ok - you haven't ruined anything." Her laugh slowed, until it was more like an errant hiccup. "It'll come out, trust me. Just...don't worry."

He glanced from her, to the jacket, and back at her again before nodding and dumping it on the back of his chair. "Sorry. I just...I was worried I'd freaked you out or something."

Katniss glanced back down at her hands, trying to merge the confident guy who had picked her up at her door, with the one who had told her ridiculous stories of his brothers over dinner, with this one, the one who was terrified he'd offended her by comparing her to a flower. It was kind of intriguing, knowing there were so many layers to Peeta Mellark. She looked up at him, almost shyly.

"You didn't offend me. I was just surprised, is all. I don't hear things like that very often."

"Then you've obviously been speaking to the wrong people," he replied. Peeta glanced at his watch, and sighed. "I'm sorry. It's late, and we still have to get home. Tomorrow is going to be a big, big day." He mimicked the dulcet tones of the schools administrator, Ms Trinket, who began every single one of her loudspeaker announcements with the same catchphrase.

Katniss laughed, amazed by the fact he could bounce back from being so worried and frustrated one minute, to calm and joking the next. "Sure, I figured it would be. At least after this weekend, it's done and you've got your afternoons and weekends back, right?"

Peeta leant back in his chair, rolling the sleeves of his shirt up to his elbows now that it was free of the constraint of his blazer. "Yep. Plenty of free time. Got any ideas of how I can spend it?" He tipped up one corner of his mouth, his eyebrow almost involuntarily raising with it.

_Oh. Ohhhhhhh._

"Um. Ahem. Er..." Katniss trailed off, pursing her lips, heart racing as she thought of exactly how she'd like him to spend it. Then she brightened. "I could show you how to shoot a bow and arrow!"

It was almost comical the way his lip dropped. "Archery?" He asked incredulously.

"Yeah! I help teach it at school for a semester every year. My dad taught me as a kid. What do you say?"

Peeta eyed her warily until his features settled, and he nodded, before pushing his chair back and rising to his feet. "Ok Katniss, deal. Once I'm finished with the play, you can show me how to... shoot."

Somehow the way he said it didn't seem anywhere near as innocent as she'd meant it.

* * *

The drive home was quiet, an evening full of good food, wine and company obviously mellowing Peeta out. He tapped his fingers against the steering wheel with whatever song was on the radio.

It was a shame Katniss couldn't relax with him.

She'd been a ball of nerves since they'd left the restaurant. She couldn't place it, but everything about him, right now, as of this moment, made her fingertips feel like they were electrified, made her head light and her thoughts fuzzy.

She folded her hands in her lap, barely able to keep her eyes on the road, or on the darkened valley beside them. No, they kept drifting to his side of the car, and the way his hair curled over his collar, and the small dimple that was showing in his cheek and the way his forearms looked with the way his damned sleeves were rolled up. How strong and firm and…... in that moment, she knew.

_So bloody sneaky._

"Mellark, you bastard," she accused, whirling as best she could in her seat to face him. "Your sleeves! You're using my damned list to your advantage, aren't you?" She waited for him to respond, but he said nothing, just kept his eyes on the road. Then he slid them over to her, very carefully, and the answering grin was slow and sly.

"Caught me. Is it working yet?"

She scowled at him, folding her arms angrily across her body. "You don't need to remind me of it all the time, you know," she muttered. "It's embarrassing. Am I ever going to be allowed to forget it?" She hated the fact that her voice cracked at the end of her sentence.

She jolted as the car slowed, pulled onto the shoulder of the road, and stopped. "Katniss, I was only joking," Peeta said quietly, turning to her, lightly touching her shoulder to get her to face him. "Well, kind of. Rolling my sleeves up is almost like a habit. I didn't even think when I did it in the restaurant. But then I remembered your list and...well...I guess I thought why the hell not? I've got to work things to my advantage somehow." He reached up tentatively, almost like he had in the school carpark, and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "And we're even ok? I'm pretty sure I said some embarrassing shit in the restaurant."

"Comparing me to a flower isn't embarrassing," she countered.

"Telling you your scowl turns me on is," he replied, turning the keys in the ignition and letting the engine rumble to life. "Just like that little line between your eyebrows right now. Damn if it doesn't."

She felt the constant, little nagging squiggle in her stomach flare into something that burned, that spread from her belly to the tips of her fingers, to her breastbone, to the base of her throat. The basic want enveloped her like a cloud, and it took everything inside of her to stop from climbing over onto him and making fast work of his shirt. And his pants. And the rest of him. She'd never been one to want to make out in the backseat of a car.

At least she hadn't been, she thought, until she met Peeta Mellark.

Katniss swallowed awkwardly and let him put the car into drive, as he smoothly went back to tapping on the wheel, his other hand resting on the console. It took another 5 minutes of agonising deliberation before she tentatively rested her hand beside his, curling her pinkie around his own. She caught the edge of a smile creep onto his face.

They drove the rest of the way in silence.

* * *

_A/N - Thanks for reading! Find me on tumblr at sponsormusings for snippets of this and my other wips, and general THG shenanigans._


	4. Chapter 4

Rain fell, a gentle spring drizzle that wasn't heavy enough to warrant Katniss to bother closing the car window. She inhaled deeply, loving the smell of it against the wet grass as Peeta navigated the way through the back roads towards home. The tension that had filled the car after their conversation had mellowed, and they hadn't spoken much during the remainder of the drive. Peeta had quietly hummed along with the radio while Katniss had tried to bite back a smile at how tone deaf he was. It was kind of endearing, in a screeching cat kind of way.

Peeta turned the corner onto District Avenue, and the car slowed to a stop a few metres from outside the front of her apartment building, the engine idling quietly. Katniss felt her semi-permanent butterflies make themselves at home in her stomach again, and the braveness she'd shown when first linking her pinkie with Peeta's over the console evaporated almost immediately. "So, uh, thanks for dinner," Katniss mumbled, snatching her hand back from his quickly, toying with the hem of her dress.

"Katniss you wouldn't even let me pay for all of it, so you don't need to thank me," he reminded her, shifting so that his back partially rested against his door. "But you can thank me for a great date, if you like."

She snorted - she couldn't help it - and a small smile played across her lips. "Ok. Thanks for a good date, Peeta."

"Humph," he grumbled. "I said great, but whatever. If it was only 'good', I guess it'll do." She knew he was joking, liked the fact that she was slowly but surely picking up those intonations in his voice.

"So needy," she quipped without even thinking, and she popped open the door, hopping out. She went to lean back through the partially opened passenger window, but paused as Peeta turned the ignition off and slid out of his own seat, closing his door behind him. "What are you doing?" She asked. "It's raining."

"Hardly," he countered. "And anyway, my dad always taught me to walk my dates to their front door. Manners and all that." He moved around the hood, then gestured towards the sidewalk that led to the buildings' front door.

"Not your mom?" She asked, and followed him with a shrug.

"Definitely not my mom," he replied, and Katniss realised he'd never once mentioned her in any of their conversations, not during dinner, not during lunches at school.

_Oops. A stone better left unturned at this stage,_ she thought.

She didn't say anything in reply, just alternated between looking towards her building and side-eying him - in a good way. She felt less guilty this way than if she stared at him straight out – though it was a little disconcerting that that was _exactly _what she wanted to do. Get close enough that she could see the flutter of his lashes - the palest blonde she'd ever seen - against his cheeks. She'd thought about those eyelashes a lot since the time he'd cornered her in her kitchen, when he'd-

"Earth to Katniss?"

Katniss blushed as she realised they'd reached her front door, and Peeta had been talking to her without reply. "Ah shit. Sorry. Spaced out." She stepped under the small awning, and out of the rain.

He grinned again, and she wondered if he was fully aware of her possibly-not-so-subtle staring and was just playing with her. "It's ok. I was just saying that I'm really looking forward to our next date."

She felt her ankle wobble, and wasn't sure if it was from the heels or Peeta's words. "Uh, sure."

"Don't sound so excited," he joked. She was surprised to see the hint of vulnerability in his eyes that didn't entirely match his tone. She sighed, and looked down at her feet before glancing back up at him.

"No, I am," she said softly. "It's just….weird for me. Dating. Or whatever it is we're doing."

"Why weird?" he stepped forward, close enough that she could see the droplets of rain that had caught in his hair, highlighted by the faint light of the lobby behind her.

"A long story, one reserved for a night after too many drinks. But….." she took a deep breath, trying to find that courage that had run through her in the car. "I guess I'm willing to give it a try. Like, another date and stuff."

"That's good to know," Peeta replied. "I'm also glad I didn't scare you off with that whole flower business."

Katniss rolled her eyes almost involuntarily. "I already told you you had nothing to worry about with that."

"But you looked so….shocked," he reminded her. She shrugged.

"Like I said earlier, I'm just not used to hearing things like that."

"Well…." he trailed off, shifted a little closer. "You should."

"Really? Why?" _Ugh, what? Since when did her voice sound all breath-y and porn-y?_

"Because I generally say what I mean. And I mean to say that kind of stuff to you a lot."

"Why?" _Yes, Katniss, that's the way. Keep being dense. You __know__ you know what he means._

"Because….."

She should have seen it coming a mile away, but she didn't, and he caught her off guard. He moved in, his hip knocking gently against hers, his hands landing on her shoulders and sliding down her arms to her wrists. His fingertips were like volts of electricity straight to the pit of her stomach, gooseflesh popping out on her skin. Her eyes fluttered closed as she saw him dip his head towards hers, her mind racing a mile a minute and then the slight pressure against her lips was soft, tentative, and _oh god there had been a shitload of spices in her meal and ugh what if her breath was rancid and he choked on it and, wow he's good at this, maybe he's had lots of experience, oh god, Katniss, of course he has, he went to college and-_

"Katniss?" he pulled away slightly, and when she opened her eyes, she had to widen them to make sure there wasn't two Peetas in front of her.

"Yeah?" She uttered.

"Stop thinking," he whispered, then leant in again.

So she did.

Katniss allowed her arms to tentatively reach up towards his neck, and his hands dropped from her wrists, instead landing on her hips and drawing her closer. His kiss was still soft, slow, almost languid, until her hands hit the back of his neck and tugged on the strands at the nape. His mouth parted slightly, whether by intention or design, she wasn't sure, but the minute he did, it was a whole new ball game.

Peeta's fingers dug into her hips as he angled his head, deepening the kiss, drawing her lower lip into his mouth before gently laving it with his tongue. She sighed a little, and her body couldn't decide if it wanted to be as limp as spaghetti or as tightly strung as a bow. Every shift he made echoed against her; the leanness of his hips, the grip of his hands, the pressure of his chest against hers, and it just felt _so damn good. _His hand slid around her waist, and she could practically feel the tension in his arm as he tried to hold himself together while he teased her tongue with his, as her fingertips pressed and clenched against his neck, his shoulders, the back of his head. She tried to focus on the feel of his skin, the way his lips felt against hers, the taste of the wine they'd shared lingering on his tongue. She focused so much she forgot to breathe, and she felt like she was going to pass out.

With a gasp, she pulled away, her heart pounding like a drum, and watched his lips curve into a smile as he looked at her. She imagined her face was as red as a tomato. "I, uh, that was some good night kiss," she muttered.

"Mmmm," he murmured in agreement. Peeta placed one more gentle kiss on her lips, then stepped back. She realised his face was as flushed as hers. "I'd better go now before I don't go home at all."

_Then damn well don't go home._

"Yeah. I guess." She reached blindly into her purse, palming her keys. "I'll see you later?"

"Sure." Peeta began walking down the side walk back to his car before he turned, shoving his hands in his pockets as he rocked back on his heels. "Lunch at school on Monday, as usual?"

She shrugged, her skin still buzzing from his kiss, wishing she had the guts to ask him to stay. But she didn't, not yet. "Sure, I don't see why not. But if Clove is there, we're shooting through ASAP."

"Ok, deal." He grinned. "Good night, Katniss."

"Good night Peeta."

* * *

"Madge said you've got a boyfriend."

"Christ, does Madge do nothing but _talk_ to people? How the hell does she get any work done, let alone find the time to do G….nope, no, I'm not even going there."

Prim's laugh echoed down the phone. "Cool your jets, Kat. I just get nothing out of you, and both Madge and I were on Tumblr the other day-"

"On what?"

"Aren't you a teacher of teenagers? Ugh, never mind. Anyway, because you never tell me _anything_, I asked if you'd gotten out of your funk over that date with that douche - which was over _5 months ago_, I might add - and she told me about this teacher. I mean, A) how have you not mentioned anything about this guy in over 5 months, and B) how have you not mentioned anything about this guy in over 5 months?"

Katniss snorted, and stretched out on her bed, grading lying forgotten on the floor. She didn't get to speak to Prim often, who, being 100 miles away with a full study schedule at med school, rarely got a minute alone with her boyfriend, let alone an opportunity to speak with Katniss. So on the occasion their schedules meshed, they would steal away at least an hour on the phone. Prim would talk and Katniss would listen. Except today.

"There was nothing to tell!" Katniss protested. "Well, until recently, anyway. He's...cute. He's an art teacher and he's a pretty fun guy."

"So I've heard, you cougar."

"Shup up, Prim, do you want to hear or not?" Katniss snapped. Prim chuckled, but murmured her assent for Katniss to continue. "Yeah, he's younger than me. Not by much, and I'm dealing with it!"

"There's nothing to deal with, Kat. It's only like 4 years."

"Ugh, what _didn't _Madge tell you?"

"How he is in bed?"

"GOOD BYE PRIM!"

"No, no, stop," Prim laughed. "I was joking. You're just so easy to make fun of!" Katniss could hear the sound of a fridge door opening, and a bottle being cracked open. Prim's voice was soft as she began speaking again. "Seriously, all Madge said was that you'd met this guy, and he was a teacher with you, but a bit younger, and it had freaked you out a little to start with. But that you seemed really keen on him."

Katniss sighed and rolled onto her stomach, cradling the phone between her shoulder and her ear. "It's...weird. Like, he just oozes confidence and positivity, but then he'll just have these complete and utter moments of vulnerability that make him….real. Like, if he was just this smooth operator, I'd be wary. But the guy spilt coffee on his sleeve during dinner the other night and totally freaked out. It was kind of reassuring." She traced her fingers along a green stripe on her bedspread. "I sometimes forget he's younger."

"He's the same age as me," Prim reminded her. "Do I seem like a kid to you?"

"Well….no. But you're my little sister. That's different. And anyway, I meant that it was a good thing. That 24 doesn't seem so young when he's around. And 27 doesn't seem so old."

"Aww, Katniss, you're smitten. Wait till I call mom and tell her."

"Don't you dare," Katniss warned, but heard the chuckle make its way down the phone.

"Don't worry, I won't. Uh, hold on for a second." The muffled sounds of the receiver being held against fabric sounded in her ear, and she caught faint snatches of conversation before Prim's voice returned. "Hey, I'm really sorry but I have to go. Aidan just came home from basketball with a mother of all gashes in his leg. These guys go hardcore. But we'll catch up soon?"

"Sure Prim. I'll talk to you later.

"Ok. Oh, and Katniss?"

"Yeah?"

"You sound happy. I've missed that. Love you."

Katniss stared at the phone in her hand, heard the beeping that told her Prim had hung up. Had she sounded upset or sad the other times she'd spoken to Prim over the last year? Had she been so grumpy that just a few simple kisses could change her entire countenance? _(not that they were anything like just a 'simple' kiss, but whatever_). Had she been that closed off for so long that the influence of a new person could really do that much? She didn't know. But what she did know was that the last 6 months had been...odd. Exciting. Vaguely terrifying. Full of anticipation. And all because of a nice guy who liked to draw and compared her to flowers.

With resolve, she rolled onto her back, and pressed Madge on speed dial. Firstly, she was going to give her friend what for, for spilling the beans to her sister. Then she was going to find out what the hell this tumblr shit was.

* * *

Katniss heard the telltale buzz of an incoming message, and fought through the paperwork laid out in front of her to find it. She smiled when she saw Peeta's name pop up in the notification box.

_Peeta: How's grading going?_

_Katniss: You don't want to know._

_Peeta: That bad?_

_Katniss: I know science isn't for everyone, but….._

_Peeta: Tell me about it. One of the assignments that got handed in told me that Van Gogh was "a cool dude who once met Doctor Who."_

_Katniss: Oh._

_Peeta: Yeah._

_Katniss: A for effort?_

_Peeta: Maybe a C for being able to refer to Doctor Who in an art assignment._

_Peeta: I hate being this busy. I've missed our lunches_

_Peeta: And I still have to have this archery lesson?_

_Katniss: Sorry, my signal dropped out. And yeah, we do. Summer isn't too far away. We should do it then._

_Peeta: Yeah. We should. _

* * *

_1 hour to go._

And it wasn't as if she was counting down. Not really. She wasn't looking at her watch every 5 minutes (only ten), or echoing the grumbles of the kids who just didn't give a shit anymore. She wasn't thinking about how she could sleep in on Monday morning (at least 9.30). Or how she could go out to the national park and lie in the grass by the lake (she could smell it already). Or how Prim had been bugging her to visit over the holidays, and to bring this 'new guy of hers' along.

Katniss kind of regretted ever spilling more beans about her dates with Peeta to her little sister.

"Ok guys, calm down. I know, I know, summer vacation starts tomorrow. But we've gotta at least do a bit more work to earn it," she announced to a chorus of groans. She'd swear these kids had never had a vacation in their life.

The last month had flown by. The play had wrapped up with two more successful shows, and she'd suddenly been caught up in the usual shit end-of-year entailed. She'd hardly managed to see Peeta during work hours, let alone outside, and their interactions had mostly been limited to a few lunches, and text conversations. She'd been surprised when she'd admitted - albeit just to herself - that she'd missed him. Missed the casual banter they'd fallen into, missed the easy way he seemed to draw her into conversation.

Missed the way his blue eyes kinda shone when he was teasing her.

Katniss shook her head, bringing herself back to the moment, and slipped her glasses on so she could read the textbook she held in her hands. She finished the excerpt she'd pre-selected, gave the kids an activity to complete, then sat back at her desk. It didn't really bother her whether they finished it or not; it didn't count whatsoever to any grades, didn't really relate to them learning anything new. It just kept them occupied until the final bell, and then they were done for the summer. She may have loved teaching, but damn how she needed the break.

This was the first year in a while that she hadn't taken on some additional summer classes to teach, or hadn't signed up to lead any hikes through one of the nearby national parks. She'd saved enough over the last couple of years to warrant her the time off, and it gave her the opportunity to visit Prim, to enjoy the parks as a visitor and not an employee, maybe take off for a weekend or two to the beach. And, she admitted, she'd wanted to keep as much time free as possible _just in case_ she allowed whatever was happening between her and Peeta to blossom into something more.

The bell finally rang, and she tried to stifle her sigh of relief as she rose, as whoops sounded around the room. She smiled, called out goodbyes, shot out a warning to one of the boys who jumped up on his chair and did an enthusiastic hip thrust. _Jeez, where did these kids get their energy?_

It wasn't until the room had emptied that she allowed herself to sink back in her chair and sigh happily. She didn't have to worry about students, or grades or listening to Clove crap on about her wedding for the entire summer. _Hallelujah. _

Katniss packed up whatever she needed, locked the rest away in the drawer with her key, and moved towards the door, flicking the light off with one hand and holding her bag with the other. Madge was already leaning against the doorframe in the hall as she stepped out.

The blonde grinned, her arms wrapped around a thick book full of sheet music. "Ready to go? If we leave now and get our shit done, we can be down at Sae's by 5. I'm fairly certain a margarita is calling my name."

Katniss chuckled. "Sure. Who else is going?"

"Chantal, Cressida you, me...there's about ten of us, I think. Thank god Clove is busy. Gale is gonna meet us after he finishes work. Oh, and Peeta is coming too." Madge winked, and looked over Katniss' shoulder; she turned, and spied him just across the corridor.

Katniss watched Peeta as he spoke with a group of students, his face animated, hands gesticulating wildly. She had no clue what he was talking about, but it didn't matter; he was in his element, his words completely captivating the three girls standing around him.

_Or, you know, they could have just been captivated by his pretty face._

"You stare at him any longer people are gonna know, Katniss," Madge teased from beside her.

"Oh shut up!" She hissed, and turned on her heel, her face aflame. Madge hurried after her, chuckling, and fell into step with her again.

"Just teasing!"

"Shut up or I'll tell everyone about your tumbled thingy."

"Katniss you promised!" Madge yelped. She tugged on Katniss' elbow. "What if one of these kids follow me? I can't be found out!"

Katniss raised her eyebrow, and smirked. "Don't worry, I won't. But god the look on your face is hilarious."

"Now _you_ can shut up," Madge huffed. "And shows what you know. It's tumblr, not tumbled. God!"

* * *

"What the _hell_ are they singing?"

Katniss narrowed her eyes, staring towards the old-school jukebox that Peeta and Gale and one of Gale's co-workers, Thresh, were huddled around. She tipped her head, trying to make out the words through a mild haze of beer. Then she caught Peeta waving his hand, and shaking his ass. "Shit," she choked on her next swallow. "Outkast."

Madge snorted, sipping the icy, frozen drink in front of her. "Gale hates this music."

"I know," Katniss grinned, remembering the teenage boy she'd grown up with, and his penchant towards the rock their dad's had listened to. It still amused her that her childhood friend had fallen in love with her co-worker, the girl who loved classical music, housing at least 3 cats at any given time and reading vogue magazine. "But he's still - incredibly awkwardly - shakin' it like a polaroid picture."

Giving everyone time to wrap up any loose ends, or drive home to change out of work attire, they'd met up at Sae's, a popular bar on the other side of town to the school. It was run by the friendly, but no holds barred Sae, an Irish immigrant who loved her Guiness on tap, fish and chips on the menu and always preferred a rowdy bar full of patrons. It was a good place, Katniss had found, to wind-down after a school year, after one of Madge's ridiculous shopping hauls, or the odd occasion when peace and quiet didn't chill her out the way it normally did. And early in the evening on a Friday night, it was full of workers celebrating the end of the week. Tonight, rowdy didn't even cut it.

"This went downhill very quickly," Chantal commented, studying the empty bottle in her hands, and the numerous ones strewn across the table. "Aren't we supposed to be responsible teachers or something?"

Madge humphed. "Not at the start of summer vacation. And anyway, after that year, we should be allowed to blow off a little steam."

"True. It was a killer," Chantal agreed. She looked up, eyed the jukebox with glazed eyes. "Imma gonna go put some decent music on."

Katniss and Madge watched as she wove - surprisingly gracefully - around the tables and other patrons, pushing Peeta and Gale out of the way to reach the jukebox, and laughed as her selection started.

Peeta began making his way back to their table, leaving Thresh, Gale and Chantal to argue over her music change, and slid into the seat beside her. She noted his shoulders were tensed, and a muscle in his jaw kept jumping. "Hey," he greeted. His hand slid across the back of her chair, brushing against her shirt slightly. After a few drinks, she kind of wanted his hand to brush against her skin - repeatedly - but right now, beggars couldn't be choosers.

"Hey. Didn't think you'd be old enough to know 'Hey Ya'," she smirked.

"Oh, I think I might have been in diapers or something at the time," He replied seriously, then nudged her shoulder with his. "Very funny, Katniss. This is good, though, you made a joke about it. Progress!"

She elbowed him in the ribs, but chuckled. He was right. The more she thought about their age difference, the less it was starting to bother her. And if she was making jokes about it, well...that was a good thing, right?

"I don't think Gale and Thresh are very happy with Chantal's selection," she said, taking another swallow of her beer.

"You think? I'm certain they're going to come to blows."

"Arguments over Taylor Swift to end the semester - she should be proud of herself."

"Hey, Katniss, Peeta - you want another drink?" They both looked up to see Cressida standing beside them, purse in hand and knowing grin on her face. They both nodded, reaching for their wallets; she brushed them aside with a wave of her hand. "Don't worry about that - my treat." She walked away, and they fell into a comfortable silence. At least Katniss thought it was comfortable. Peeta was wriggling around in his seat like a little kid who needed to pee, and she was surprised to hear him clear his throat nervously.

"Peet, you ok?"

"Yeah, I, uh….er….," he coughed, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "So, uh, what's the deal with the history between you and Gale?"

"Me and Gale what?" Katniss asked, confused. She placed her now empty bottle on the table and looked at him expectantly, glad that the din in the bar was loud enough to cover their conversation.

"You and, uh, Gale. When we were at the jukebox we were talking about….stuff, and he mentioned you guys had dated?"

She groaned, a long, drawn-out, very un-Katniss like groan. "Oh for fucks sake. He's jerking your chain because Madge has probably told him about our….dates. We were 'boyfriend and girlfriend'" - she used air quotes as she said it - "For about a whole week when we were 16. We realised we were better friends than anything more. End of story." She glanced over at him, saw his shoulders visibly relax. "Hey, what- were you _jealous_, Peeta? Jealous of _Gale_?"

"How was I supposed to know that was the deal?" he replied defensively.

"But he's married!"

"I _know_ that," Peeta retorted, then slumped lower in his seat. "I'm sorry I said anything. He just made it seem like you'd been so serious….."

Katniss turned to face the jukebox, saw Gale watching them, and he grinned, gesturing towards her with a finger gun. "Ugh, the smart ass." She flipped him the bird, then turned back to Peeta. She wanted - desperately - to touch his arm, his leg, his face, in any way to reassure him. But she wasn't entirely sure she wanted to come out to any of their co-workers. Instead, she leant in closer, resting her elbows on her jean-clad knees. Her voice was soft as she tried to explain as best she could. She hadn't told him most of this for a reason, but she couldn't very well hold back now.

"Gale and I…..we grew up together in the same town, about an hour from here. We both lost our dads around the same time, and I guess we helped each other through it. Yeah, we 'dated', or whatever it is you do at that age, and then figured we were better as friends, like I said. He actually came up a couple years ago to visit me, met Madge, and bam. That's why he's here. He moved here for her. I'm not secretly pining for him, or anything, ok? And just know I'm likely to go and kneecap him for being an intentional douche."

Peeta shrugged his shoulders, and sighed. "Sorry. He just said it, and...yeah, I guess I felt jealous. Which is stupid. I just….I really like you. And it threw me for a minute." He took a deep breath, reached for the fresh beer that Cressida held out to him as she returned, and passed Katniss hers. "But, um, I'm sorry about your dad."

She shrugged, swallowing the cool liquid as it coated her throat like a balm. "Yeah, me too. But it happened a long time ago now. It doesn't hurt like it used to." And it was true. It had hurt being 12 years old and fatherless. It had haunted her being 17 years old and fatherless. But at 27? She'd known for a long time he'd want her to be happy. In study, in work, in general life, she had been. Love had been another deal altogether. But this was not going to be the 'night after a lot of drinks' where she told that story, and resolved to put it out of her mind. "Anyway, rest assured you have nothing to worry about. There's no competition."

The evening wore on, more drinks, more bowls of pretzels, with messy cheese fries and nachos to boot. Katniss had switched to alternating with soda a long time ago, wanting to hold her buzz without going too far. She wasn't in college any more, that was for sure, she thought wryly.

She'd laughed at the bad jokes Beetee - a middle-aged and much respected maths teacher - told, kicked Gale hard in the shin over ribbing Peeta. She'd endured a girls trip to the bathroom where Cressida had grilled Madge on Thresh's availability, and listened as someone - she wasn't even sure who - massacred a Killers song.

Peeta hadn't drifted far from her side all night. She knew he'd watched her just as much as she'd watched him, had almost bit straight through her lip when he'd grinned at her with those stupid dimples popping. She'd studied him with interest as he'd retold a story from his senior year of college, and it just confirmed what she had already known. He didn't just have a gift with the kids at school - he had an uncanny ability to hold the attention of anyone, regardless of age or gender. His words were as good as they rest of him.

_Except for that ass. That couldn't really hold a comparison._

Part of her still thought it was kind of sweet - and hilarious - that he'd been jealous of Gale. It was those little pockets of insecurity that got to her every time. His smooth moves might make her stomach quiver, but it was those self-conscious grins and stumbles that tugged at her heart every time. _And, god, she needed to stop drinking completely soon before she started quoting poetry or some shit like that._

Her foot began to tap as she heard the starting notes of a song over the din, and Peeta immediately noticed, turning to her. "You like this song, huh?" Katniss nodded with a smile; it reminded her of being a kid and listening to her mom sing - as badly as Peeta - along with the radio. "That's cool." He leant in under the guise of wanting not to yell over the din, but she knew from the way his lips brushed against her ear, it was just to torment her. "I like it too. My dad listens to them a lot."

She turned her head slightly, not wanting the brief touch to stop. "Yeah?"

"Yep. There's something kind of sexy about this song." This time, she turned her head, eyed him curiously.

"How so?"

"I dunno. The beat. And…..you know, these lyrics kind of make me think of you."

She curled her lip, confused. "Huh?" _Why did so many things remind him of her?_

"Welllll….." he leant in close again, and this time she didn't care who saw. She was curious. And still mildly drunk. "_Everybody wants to touch somebody, if it takes all night._ I suppose….I'd kind of like to do that to you. Touch you. All night."

"Holy shit," she swung her head around, and stared at him, not daring to look away for once. His eyes were clear, but hooded and full of lust and she finally understood what the phrase "eye-fucking" meant. Because sure as hell, that's what she was doing right now.

Abruptly, she stood up from her chair, clutching at her purse. "I'm, uh, going home," she blurted. A chorus of _Nooooooos_ sounded, but she waved them off. "Nope. I have to go. Now. I'll, uh, catch you all soon. Have a great summer, guys. Madge, I'll catch you Sunday."

Katniss stumbled a little as she rounded the table, heading directly for the door. She swung around as she reached it, satisfied when she saw that Peeta had watched her go, his blue eyes burning into her. She took a deep breath, called up that courage she knew was in there.

_Do it._

_No._

_Do it, Katniss. You know you want to._

And crooked a finger towards him, tipping her head towards the door at the same time.

He didn't need to be told twice.

* * *

**A/N - Thank you so much, it blows me away what an enthusiastic response this story has received so far. I appreciate all the reviews, follows and favourites. I hope you continue to enjoy it!**

**This is for the awesomesauce baronesskika. Happy early birthday, lovely!**


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